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Christian Conference of Asia
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Program Clusters: Special Programs: Congress of Asian
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WORLD AIDS DAY LITURGY
1 December 2012
World AIDS Day (2011-15)
Getting to
zero:
Zero new
HIV infections.
Zero
discrimination.
Zero AIDS related deathsWorship Service for World AIDS Day 2012: Towards the “three zeros” in faith, commitment and love
Introduction
There has been a lot of progress in the response to
HIV since AIDS was identified some three decades ago. Global infection rates have
begun to decline, fewer babies are being born with HIV and 8 million people in
low- and middle-income countries are now on life-saving anti-retroviral
medicines.
However, much more remains to be done. The number of
people newly infected is still higher than the number of people starting on
treatment. And there remain 7 million people who need treatment but who do not
have access to it, including2 million children.[1]
In addition, people living with or vulnerable to HIV
continue to face stigma, discrimination and violations of their human rights
and dignity, which thwart prevention and treatment efforts and deny them access
to comprehensive care and support.
We are at a critical moment in the response to HIV.
Progress has been made but it is not enough. Indeed, the only acceptable
statistics here are “Zero AIDS-related deaths, Zero new HIV infections and Zero
discrimination”. Therefore, this World AIDS Day, we not only come together to
give thanks for what has been achieved but to commit ourselves anew to doing
all we can to make the UNAIDS vision of the “three zeros” a reality.[2]
Worship Service for World AIDS Day 2012: Towards the “three zeros” in faith, commitment and love
Preparatory Music
Words of Welcome
Welcome to our
World AIDS Day service.
Much has been
achieved in the past 30 years of the AIDS pandemic but if we are to see a day
of “Zero AIDS-related deaths, Zero new HIV infections and Zero discrimination”,
we must work together to ensure that political will and financial commitments
continue.
What’s more,
we, as faith communities, must strengthen and expand our work and partnerships
to ensure that we too are playing a leading role in the HIV response.
Call to Worship
Leader:
Therefore, we gather before our
God of promises with faith, commitment and hope. Hear the promise of the one
seated on the throne:
All: “See, I am making all things
new.”
Leader: Hear the promise of the resurrected
one:
All: “I am with you always, to the
end of the age.”
Leader: Hear the promise borne on the wind:
All: “The Spirit
bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God; and if children,
then heirs, heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ.”
Leader:
We come to worship a faithful
God, who keeps these promises of love. In the name of the Blessed Trinity, one
God, now and forever, Amen.
Song CantaiaoSenhor/Oh sing to the Lord (The International
Ecumenical Hymnbook,Thuma Mina#3)
Other suggestions include; Joyful, joyful we adore thee (Text: Henry Van Dyke; Tune: Hymn to Joy);
Laudateomnesgentes (Taizé, Thuma Mina #134);
Reading: Jeremiah 31: 10-14
Hear the word of the Lord, O
nations,
and declare it in the coastlands far away; say, ‘He who scattered Israel will gather him, and will keep him as a shepherd a flock.’ For the Lord has ransomed Jacob, and has redeemed him from hands too strong for him.
They shall come and sing aloud on the height of Zion,
and they shall be radiant over the goodness of the Lord, over the grain, the wine, and the oil, and over the young of the flock and the herd; their life shall become like a watered garden, and they shall never languish again.
Then shall the young women rejoice in the dance,
and the young men and the old shall be merry. I will turn their mourning into joy, I will comfort them, and give them gladness for sorrow. I will give the priests their fill of fatness, and my people shall be satisfied with my bounty,
says
the Lord.
Congregational Response
All: What will it take, O God…
Left: for us to see a day of no more AIDS-related
deaths, no more new HIV infections and no more discrimination in the land of
the living?
All: What will it take, O God…
Right: for change to come in our community, in our
lives?
All: What will it take, O God…
Left: for the scattered to be gathered that all may
praise and dance together?
All: What will it take, O God…
Right: for us to see the end of AIDS?
All: What will it take, O
God…
Left: for us, your church, to be free from
ignorance and fear?
All: What will it take, O God…
Right: for us to recognize your Word become flesh
and living among us with HIV?
All: What will it take, O God, for the dance to begin and the deaths to end?
Video
This video provides reflections from people of faith who attended the
International AIDS Conference held in Washington DC in July this year. In
particular it challenges us as faith communities to do more to address HIV and
points to key contributions that we can make as part of the global movement
working to achieve the “three zeros”.
Reading: Revelation 21: 1-7
Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth; for the first
heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more. And I saw
the holy city, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared
as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne
saying:
‘See, the home of God is among mortals.
He will dwell with them; they will be his peoples, and God himself will be with them;
he will wipe every tear from their eyes.
Death will be no more; mourning and crying and pain will be no more, for the first things have passed away.’
And
the one who was seated on the throne said, ‘See, I am making all things new.’
Also he said, ‘Write this, for these words are trustworthy and true.’ Then he
said to me, ‘It is done! I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the
end. To the thirsty I will give water as a gift from the spring of the water of
life. Those who conquer will inherit these things, and I will be their God and
they will be my children.’
Silent Reflection
Sit in silent meditation, consider the
following questions, and write any words or phrases of promise that come to
mind on strips of paper given to you as you arrived:
§
What
comes to mind as you contemplate the new heaven and new earth?
§
What
promise does God have for you?
§
What is
God’s promise for your neighbour?
§
What is
God’s promise for the world?
§
What is
God’s promise in relation to HIV and AIDS?
§
What is
being made new?
§
What peace
do you notice within you?
§
As you
breathe, allow your breath to reach this place of peace.
§
Breathe
out the old, breathe in the new.
§
Give
thanks to God for this time of reflection.
Declaration of Commitment
Leader: Church, we are the Body of Christ
All:
The Body of Christ, living with HIV
Leader: If we choose, we can make a difference
All:
If we choose, we can help bring newness, hope and peace
Leader: In our homes, in our church, in our community,
in our nation, in our world
All: In
our bodies, in our minds, in our spirits
Leader: Our sisters and brothers, our parents and
children are infected with HIV
All:
We are living and dying with AIDS
Leader: If we choose, the blockages to healing can be
removed
All:
We choose compassion. We choose to respond
Leader: Will you respond with your money, with your
time, with your love?
All:
We are the Body of Christ. We choose to respond until the day of the
“last one”:
-the day of the last new HIV infection and
the last child born with HIV;
-the day of the last time that someone is
stigmatized or bullied because of HIV and AIDS;
-the day of the last time that someone dies
from this disease.
We pray and act for the day of the last one!
Intercessions
God of Hope
All of us are affected by
HIV and AIDS.
At this time of Advent
Hope,
As we prepare for the
coming of your Son into this world
We give thanks for signs of
hope.
For growing understanding
For medical advances
For changing attitudes and behaviour
For greater awareness and
concern in your church.
All:
Lord hear us, Lord Graciously hear us
God of Unity
Bind us together with
strong ties of love
That all churches will be
places whereeveryone can find acceptance,
May our churches provide a
welcome for all affected byHIV and AIDS.
May they be places where
care is given and received,
Especiallyfor affected
children and youth,
Where stories are told and
heard,
Where fear is overcome by
love,
Where you are to be found.
All:
Lord hear us, Lord Graciously hear us
God of Promise
The
end of AIDS is in sight!
Give
us courage to run the race set before us.
We
look to you in prayer and in action
For
a day when all will have access to education and information
For
a day when all who need it can get affordable and good quality treatment
For a day when all
are accepted, included and given care and support
Let
us shedour cynicism,denial, selfishness and laziness.
May
we surprise you, as you surprise us!
All:
Lord hear us, Lord Graciously hear us
Song Yarabbassalami (Agape
Songs of Hope and Reconciliation #110);
Other song suggestions include:O God, who gives us life (Text: Carl Daw); God of our life (Text: Hugh Kerr); Word of justice (Agape #107); ThumaMina
(Agape # 91); Enviado soy de Dios/Sent by the Lord am I (Iona Community, “Sent
by the Lord”, p.18); Senzenina (Iona Community, “Sent by the Lord”, p.46)
Sending Forth
All congregants stand and
hold aloft the strips of paper used in the silent reflection.
Leader: In Genesis 9, God said to Noah …‘I
establish my covenant with you, that never again shall all flesh be cut off by
the waters of a flood, and never again shall there be a flood to destroy the
earth… I have set my bow in the clouds, and it shall be a
sign of the covenant between me and the earth. When I bring clouds over the earth and the bow is seen
in the clouds, I will remember my
covenant that is between me and you and every living creature of all flesh; and
the waters shall never again become a flood to destroy all flesh. When the bow is in the clouds, I will see it and
remember the everlasting covenant between God and every living creature of all
flesh that is on the earth.’
All: We claim the promise of our God for all, in our hearts, minds and actions.
Leader: Then go
forth, confident in the trustworthiness of the One who placed the rainbow in
the heavens - that we may see, remember and do.
All: We claim the promise of our God for all, in our hearts, minds and actions.
Leader: Go forth, strengthened by hope from the One
who sent Jesus the Christ, knowing that this hope will not disappoint us.
All: We claim the promise of our God for all, in our hearts, minds and actions.
Leader: Go forth by faith. The One who placed the
rainbow and sent the Christ has sent the Spirit, so we know that God is with us
always.
Recessional Music
(Please see more on HIV and AIDS on EGY and CCA NEWS pages)
Credits: This liturgy was written and compiled by Ruth Foley,
with input from Andrew Donaldson, Karen Plater and Sara Speicher, unless
otherwise indicated.Scripture quotations are from the New Revised Standard Version Bible, ©
1989 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches
of Christ in the USA and are used by permission. All rights reserved.The Call to Worship is based on a prayer developed for the Interfaith Pre-Conference
to AIDS 2006 by the Ecumenical Advocacy Alliance.The texts for the Congregational Response, the Declaration of Commitment
and the Sending Forth are all adapted from resources produced by the Balm in
Gilead for the National Week of Prayer for the Healing of AIDS:
http://www.nationalweekofprayerforthehealingofaids.org/downloads/2012%20NWPHA%20E-Worship%20Book%20Final-fnl.pdf.
The final response in the Declaration of Commitment draws from the
Prayer of Commitment written for an Interfaith Service of Hope and Commitment
held at the time of the NAMES Project AIDS Quilt Memorial display in Washington
National Cathedral in July 2012.
The intercessions
are adapted
from prayers prepared by The Diakonia Council of Churches in South Africa.
Annex: Video- Reflections
from people of faith attending the International AIDS Conference held in
Washington DC in July 2012.
The video is available online at http://iac.ecumenicaladvocacy.org/in-the-rush-for-a-cure-lessons-we-cannot-forget, or can be
downloaded as a standalone file from http://www.e-alliance.ch/en/s/hivaids/world-aids-day/.
If you are unable to show a video in your place of worship, you could
read some of the main points made by people in the video that have been
transcribed below.
Video
Transcription
Peter Prove, Executive Director, Ecumenical Advocacy Alliance
There is a lot of excitement here at the International
AIDS Conference 2012 about new science and new developments that might hold out
promise for a vaccine or a cure. But, as much as we must celebrate and pursue
these opportunities, we must not lose sight of the ‘software’ of the HIV
response - the crucial enablers, the
community based programming - that enablescommunities to engage in the response
and deal with issues like stigma and discrimination that are obstacles to any
delivery of that sort of scientific advance. We will not win this struggle against
HIV with pharmaceuticals alone. It has to be dealt with at the community level,
at the level of attitudes and at the level of empowermentof those communities
most affected. And in that regard the faith-based community has a key responsibility
and a key potential.
Rev Michael Schuenemeyer, Executive Director, United Church of Christ
HIV and AIDS Network
One of the things that the faith-community has learned is that we work
better when we work together; that the networking of relationships across all
sectors of the response is really critical to being effective in responding to
this disease.
ErlindaSenturias, Former Consultant, Christian Conference of Asia
If we want to turn the tide, everybody must be invited
to the table, everyone must be included. We cannot exclude anyone.
Faghmeda Miller,
Positive Muslims, South Africa
Although some of us are working together, not all of us are working
together. This is the biggest problem. Some communities still have this notion
that ‘it’s not affecting us’. It’s always “out there”. It’s in your religion,
not in my religion. We really must work hard to change this and work together
100%.
Canon Gideon
Byamugisha, Goodwill Ambassador on HIV & AIDS, Christian Aid UK
Communities still need to learn that having the right language is the
first step. This means having the right language to reduce stigma and shame, to
multiply safe practises and access to testing, treatment and empowerment.
PernessaSeele, CEO and Founder, The Balm in Gilead
Today, the AIDS epidemic is teaching us about the
commonalities between the African Americans and Africans. Todayin Raleigh Durham,
North Carolina, the rate of HIV among black women is now higher than the rate
of HIV among women in the Republic of the Congo. So, we are learning about the
commonalitiesamongblack women, men who have sex with men – and the phobias
around that - and youth. We have so many commonalities. One commonality that is
central is the role of faith. For black people worldwide, faith is central to
how they address everything in their lives.
Asavari Herwadkar, Coordinator for
the Asian Interfaith Network on HIV/AIDS(AINA) and the International Network of
Religious Leaders living with or Personally Affected by HIV and AIDS (INERELA+)
in Asia Pacific
Communities have realised that they have to help much
more that they have been up to now; that when it comes to health issues that
include elements of stigma anddiscrimination; it cannot be left solely to a few
people, to the health professionals or politicians. The impact that they could
have as faith communities means that they have to play a bigger role if we
really want to properly address these issues.
Rev Michael Schuenemeyer, Executive Director, United Church of Christ
HIV and AIDS Network
So often we are quick to jump to judgemental positions about how HIV is
transmitted, and we forget that we really need to ground ourselves in the value
that as a child of God every person is endowed with worth and dignity that human
judgement cannot set aside. And we always need to be engaging in our response
to HIV or any other issue from the values of worth and dignity.
[1] These statistics are
taken from the UNAIDS report ‘Together we will end AIDS’ published in July
2012: http://www.unaids.org/en/media/unaids/contentassets/documents/epidemiology/2012/20120718_togetherwewillendaids_en.pdf.
[2]UNAIDS is the Joint
United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS. Its ‘three zeros’ vision is part of its
2012-2016 strategy:http://www.unaids.org/en/media/unaids/contentassets/documents/unaidspublication/2010/JC2034_UNAIDS_Strategy_en.pdf.
[3] The video is
available at www.e-alliance.ch. See Annex for a
direct link, a transcription and more details.
[4]Alternatively,
you could ask someone, perhaps someone living with HIV, to prepare a spoken
reflection on these questions, and then invite people to write their own thoughts
and ideas on their strips of paper in response.
posted by communications on Saturday, December 01, 2012 Dalit Liberation Sunday.jpg) 9th December 2012
Letter from the
General Secretary/National Council of Churches India (NCCI)
Break Barriers!
Build the World of Equality!
Dalit Liberation Sunday is celebrated during the Advent
season every year. This observance makes us look at the significance of the
birth of Jesus Christ afresh. The incarnation of Christ is not some charitable
act of condescendence, but a decisive expression of the divine in breaking the
divide between God and humanity so that God could identify with humanity, and
humanity could experience togetherness with God. Paul says that Christ Jesus,
“though he was in the form of God did not equality with God as something to be
exploited, but emptied himself, taking the form of a slave, being born in human
likeness.” (Phil.2: 6-7) Not only is the divine-human divide obliterated, but
even the human-human divide is eradicated as Paul affirms, “For he is our
peace; in his flesh he has made both groups into one and has broken down the
dividing wall, which is the hostility between us.”(Eph.2:14) In other words, the
incarnation has theological-sociological significance.
A spirituality which operates out of theological
justification of the sociological status quo can only think of doing charity as
an act of condescension. The divisions and barriers remain. They are transcended
only temporarily, similar to acts of giving gifts to orphanages and old
people’s homes or war truces at Christmas time. Once the Christmas season is
over, we are back to our structures, divisions, and barriers. This is an
expression of love without justice. However the celebration of Dalit Liberation
Sunday calls for a spirituality which operates out of a theological questioning
of the sociological status quo. Jesus declares it powerfully in the Nazareth
manifesto: “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to
bring good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives
and recovery of sight to the blind, to let the oppressed go free, to proclaim
the year of the Lord’s favour.” (Lk.4:18-19)Here is a spirituality that
questions the status quo, that seeks to break all unjust divisions and
barriers, and commits itself to bring in a world of love with justice.
May our celebration of Dalit Liberation Sunday lead us to a
celebration of love with justice!
Roger Gaikwad
General Secretary, NCCI
Introduction
“Break the barriers: build the world of
equality”
Dalit Liberation
Sunday
9th
December 2012
‘Are you not like the
Ethiopians to me, O people of Israel? says the Lord. Did I not bring
Israel up from the land of Egypt, and the Philistines from Caphtor and the
Arameans from Kir?’ (Amos 9:7)
‘He unrolled the scroll and
found the place where it was written: ‘The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because
he has anointed me to bring good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim
release to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to let the
oppressed go free, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favour.’ (Luke
17- 19)
‘So when the Samaritans came
to him, they asked him to stay with them; and he stayed there for two days.’ (John
4:40)
‘The voice said
to him again, a second time, ‘What God has made clean, you must not call
profane.’ (Acts 10: 15)
Barriers that unjustly
divide
Heinous discrimination based on casteism, the most
complicated social system in the world, has erected barriers between humans
instead of creating common places. Discriminating and socially ostracising the Dalits,
who are also the equal creations of the Creator God, on the basis of birth
could be seen as a real challenge to the entire humanity. Those who are from
the ‘dominant caste’, benefit out of this system in India. They want to see the
continuity of the system. Even though Dalits are transformed into a people who are
aware of the gravity of the marginalisation they face and much more able to
resist the marginalisation and atrocities, the situation is not changed to the
degree it should be. The National Council of Churches in India (NCCI) along
with the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of India (CBCI), want to uphold the
Christian spirituality and ethics of equality and equal opportunity for all
humankind against the marginalisation and oppression of Dalits.
Liberation from
Limitations
Dalit Liberation Sunday, an initiative of the National
Council of Churches in India, was later on taken up in a larger form by the National
Coordination Committee for Dalit Christian Rights (NCCDC), a joint programme of
NCCI and CBCI, aiming at the empowerment of the local congregations for Dalit
liberation. Dalit Liberation Sunday is celebrated by the member churches of
NCCI and the churches under CBCI in their local congregations across India on
the Sunday nearest to the International Human Rights Day (IHRD December 10th)
commemorating the importance of it in Indian Dalit struggles. In order to create
widespread awareness and muster solidarity campaigns against casteist
discrimination, this Sunday is celebrated with a special order of worship,
rallies, folk art forms, solidarity fellowship and campaigns.
Some Ideas
for Worship
1. Invocation
Use drum beating for the invocation. The traditional Dalit
percussion instruments can be used for this invocation. In front of the church
a pot and a broom could be kept eighteen feet away from the front door to
denote the heinous untouchability suffered by Dalits. A red carpet or red cloth
can be kept between this pot and the front door. Worshippers can start the
procession from around fifty or more feet away from the front door and step
over the boom and pot and tread over the carpet to enter the church as an act
of protest against casteism.
In the forefront of the procession a Dalit girl may carry an
open bible. Worshippers can feel free to dance according to the drum beats. A
cross, surrounded by a broken chain, which symbolises our God’s solidarity with
the struggling people, could be carried by a Dalit boy.
2. Lighting of the
lamp
After entering the worship, place the elders of the church
may join in lighting an earthen lamp as a symbol of the presence of the Holy
Spirit.
Call to Worship
Their inhuman atrocities have carved caves
In the rock of my heart,
I must tread this forest with wary steps
Eyes fixed on the changing times
The tables have turned now
Protests spark
Now here
Now there
I have been silent all these days
Listening to the voice of right and wrong
But now I will fan the flames
For human rights.[3]
Come let us praise the God who appoints us over nations to
pluck and pull down evil and oppressive structures.
Come let us worship the God who empowers us to destroy and
overthrow dehumanizing and subjugating systems.
Come let us rejoice in glorifying the God who builds and plants
a society of equal and Just[4], Amen.
Opening Prayer
God of justice and dignity, who broke the yoke of oppression
and slavery in the midnight for Israelites, help us to turn our dreams of
equality into reality. God of grace who stood with Ruth and Naomi who roamed
with empty bellies, grievous and anxious hearts strengthen us in our
helplessness to work for those who are pushed to the margins. God of Love, who
engaged the Samaritan woman in your ministry, liberates us from oppressive
structures and dominant forces that enslave us. In Jesus name we pray Amen.
Opening Hymn: Jesu
Jesu fill us with your love
Praise and Thanks giving (responsive reading)
L: My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God
my Saviour.
All: for God has looked with favour on the lowliness
of God’s people
L: for the mighty One has done great things for me and holy
is God’s name
All: for the mercy of God is on all who are
oppressed, marginalized and in various forms of bondage.
L: God’s mighty arm has scattered the proud in the thoughts
of their hearts
All: God has brought down the powerful from their
thrones and lifted up the lowly
L: God has filled the hungry with good things and sent the
rich away empty
All: God the merciful always remembers the misery of
God’s people and rescues and saves Amen. (Song of Mary modified Luke
2:46-54)
SCRIPTURE READING
SERMON
Confession
Compassionate God you have created us in your image and
likeness. You made us all equal but we have distorted the principle of equality
on the basis of caste, gender, colour, region and creed. You made sun, moon,
earth, water, trees and sky for everyone’s need. But we exploited and abused your
creation for our greed and selfish gains. Like Peter we have believed in holy
and profane creatures and segregated people and sinned against your creation.
We have believed in baseless and illogical myths of Purusa of Rig Veda and
practiced Caste system. We are not worthy to be called your children. Oh Lord,
you are full of mercy and compassion; forgive us our foolish and unjust ways. You
have called us to be partners of transformation, but we have failed to hear the
cries of our brothers and sister in bondage of poverty and oppression. God of
love and mercy forgive our short comings and transform us by renewing our minds
to do your will and what is good and acceptable Amen. (Roman 12: 2)
Absolution
So if anyone is in Christ, there is a new creation;
everything that is oppressive and hard hearted has passed away. May God our
creator who turns darkness into light, who brings us from ignorance to
knowledge and from death to life forgive us and make us new creation Amen. (2
Cor. 5: 17).
Intercessory Prayers
Let us pray for the victims of Lakshmipeta village in
Srikakulam of Andhra Pradesh where 4 dalits were hanged to death and 30 men and
women were severely injured. May God heal their seen and unseen wounds …… Silence
Let us pray for the Ministers, President, Governors, and
Judiciary and for all the government officials who are involved in the public
administration. May God grant them human heart and wisdom to do the right and
just acts ….. Silence
Let us pray for the Church to be a channel to demonstrate
God’s love in this world. To achieve equality, justice and dignity to all its
members irrespective of their caste, colour, and gender, linguistic back
grounds and regional background….. Silence
Lord in your mercy
Hear our prayers
Closing Hymn: Help us to accept each other….
Lord’s Prayer in our Mother Tongue
Closing Prayer:
God of Gibeonites, who stood for the helpless, be with us
and strengthen us. God of lowly Galileans and Samaritans who empowered the weak
and marginalized for your ministry be with us and empower us. God of
Dalits/ancestors we thank you for your son Jesus Christ who experienced pain,
sufferings, betrayal, neglected and slaughtered like us and shared our pains
and became a hope for us to resist violence and break barriers. Help us to be
your channels of liberation in this world. In Jesus name we pray Amen.
Benediction:
May God bless you with discomfort
At easy answers, half truths, and superficial relationships,
So that you may live deep within your heart.
May God bless you with anger
At injustice, oppression, and exploitation of people,
So that you may work for justice, freedom, and peace.
May God bless you with tears
To shed for those who suffer pain, rejection, hunger, and
war,
So that you may reach out your hand to comfort them and to
turn their pain to joy.
And may God bless you with enough foolishness
To believe that you can make a difference in the world,
So that you can do what others claim cannot be done,
To bring justice and kindness to all our children and the
poor.[5]
[1]
http://infochangeindia.org/human-rights/analysis/dronacharyas-all-caste-discrimination-in-higher-education.html
[2]
http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2012-11-09/india/35015844_1_dalit-houses-dalit-youth-dalit-boy
[3]
(“caves” by Jyoti Lanjewar) Sathianathan Clark, Dalits and Christianity, (Delhi:
Oxford University Press, 1998), 179.
[4]
Jer 1: 10 modified
[5] Franciscan Benediction
posted by communications on Wednesday, November 28, 2012 Basic Ecumenical Course
22 November 2012
Participating in God’s Holistic Mission of Reconciling the Whole World
“Ecumenism is not a subject to be studied but is a matter of life” says
Rt. Rev. Dr. Zacharias Mar Theophilus, Suffragan Metropolitan of Mar Thoma
Church and former member of WCC Central Committee. Delivering the key note
address at the inauguration of the Basic Ecumenical Course in the Ecumenical
Christian Centre (ECC), Bangalore, he said that Ecumenism is the affirmation of
life and in the midst of the escalating realities of the destruction of life, like
exploitation of children and nature, churches are urgently called to promote
peace and justice for all – as reflected in the theme of the coming WCC
Assembly in Busan in 2013 “God, lead us to Peace and Justice.” In the midst of brokenness of our world today,
he emphasized a critical need for a paradigm shift from being man-centered to a life-centered
praxis.
The two-week ecumenical course jointly
organized by the CCA Program Unit on Faith Mission and Unity (FMU), National
Council of Churches in India (NCCI) and Indian School of Ecumenical Theology
(ISET) of the Ecumenical Christian Centre (ECC) was inaugurated on November 20,
2012. After, an eco-friendly worship service that was held in the garden of ECC,
Rev. Dr. Cherian Thomas, Director of ECC and Rev. Dr. Reji Samuel, the Dean of
ISET warmly welcomed the participants and the resource persons. Prayers and
greetings were brought by Rt. Rev. Duleep de Chickera, retired Bishop of the
Church of Ceylon, and Bible Study leader of the course. Rev. Dr. Henriette
Hutabarat Lebang conveyed greetings from the CCA members and appreciated NCC India
and ECC for their wonderful collaboration in organizing this program.
As part of introduction to the ecumenical movement in Asia, Dr. Henriette Hutabarat Lebang shared the CCA life and ministry and Dr. Kambodji, CCA consultant for HIV and AIDS, presented the Challenges
of HIV/AIDS to the Ministry of Asian Churches today. In the sessions on
Ecumenical Journey of Churches in India, Dr. D. Arthur Jeyakumar, a church
historian presently teaching at the Gurukul Theological Seminary, presented a
paper on the ‘Indian contribution to the Ecumenical Movement,’ and Fr. Dr. Sebastian Payyappilly, CMI, lecturer
at Dharmaram Vidya Kshetram a prestigious Catholic Institution in Bangalore presented
the Roman Catholic Church perspective. Prof. Dr. Ninan Koshy, former Director of WCC
Churches’ Commission on International Affairs presented the Ecumenical Movement
in Asia. In concluding this first phase
of the course, the participants will discuss the emerging and challenging
issues in churches’ mission today and identify the sign of hope for the
reconciling mission of the churches in Asia today.
Several lectures addressing some
of the critical issues are scheduled as part of this course, such as, ‘Understanding People of Other Faiths’
by Prof. Dr. P.S. Jacob, former Principal of Ahmednagar College; ‘Religion and
Politics’ by Dr. Ninan Koshy; ‘Displaced People’ by Prof. Dr. Rini Ralte from
United Theological College (UTC) ; ‘Ecological Problems: the Importance of
Conservation’ by Rev. Dr. Allan Palanna from UTC; ‘Subaltern Issues: On
Fragmentation of Society (Dalits/Tribals)’ by Rev. Bharath Patta, General
Secretary of India SCM; ‘Children At Risk – on Child Trafficking’ by the
Director of Don Bosco, ‘Gender Justice and Transgender Issues’ by Prof. Dr. Sr.
Puspha Joseph from Madras University, ‘Vision of Unity in Plural and Diverse
Context’ by Rev. Dr. K. C. Abraham, former Director of SATHRI the research wing
of the Senate of Serampore University.
As part of the efforts to familiarize
participants with the life of communities in India, exposure programs to
selected religious centers, worship with local congregations in Bangalore and a
visit to Mysore city, a historic and important place in Karnataka, have been
included as part of the course. The five Bible Studies during the course are
led by Rt. Rev. Duleep de Chickera and Prof. Dr. Evangeline Rajkumar (Rev.)
from UTC Bangalore.
By the end of the second phase ,
the participants will have an idea of the Ecumenical movement in India through
lectures on the following topics by eminent theologians and ecumenists: ‘Ecumenical Journey of NCC India – Towards a
Wider Perspective’ by Rev. Dr. Roger Gaikwad, General Secretary of NCC India; ‘Witness
of Reconciling Mission in India’ by Rev. Dr. David Selvaraj, Director of
Vishtar and Rev. Dr. Mohan Lalbeer, (Secretary of the Board of Theological
Studies of Senate of Serampore College), Rev. Lee Hee Woon, a missionary of
Presbyterian Church of Korea stationed in Bangalore, and Rev. Vincent Rajkumar,
Director of Christian Institute for the Study of Religion and Society, CISRS. Pastors, theological educators, missionaries,
NGO activists in India are invited to attend this one day seminar that has its focus
on a new vision as theological educators and pastors in overcoming division, adopting
servant-ship as an agent of change and being channel of God’s grace. This is considered as a critical role and
responsibility of the churches today.
 posted by communications on Friday, November 23, 2012 |
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